An increasing proportion of video cameras are now equipped with an electronic monitor whose display direction can be changed as required. In addition, market demands are intensifying for smaller video cameras with more varied designs.
Configuration of a video camera with electronic monitor of the prior art is explained with reference to perspectives of FIGS. 6 and 7. An electronic monitor 101 displays video images during recording and playback, and is attached to a video camera body 103 in an openable and rotatable fashion by a fulcrum 102. A cassette holder 104, into which a tape cassette (not illustrated) is inserted, is provided on the video camera body 103 at the opposite side of the electronic monitor 101. A grip belt 105 is provided on the video camera body 103 also at the same side as the cassette holder 104, for the user to insert the hand during operation.
A video camera with electronic monitor of the prior art as configured above is explained below.
The electronic monitor 101 is attached to the video camera body 103 by the fulcrum 102, and is openable in such a way that one side of the electronic monitor 101 separates from a compartment in the video camera body 103. The electronic monitor 101 is also rotatable in a direction perpendicular to the opening axis (not illustrated). Since the cassette holder 104 is disposed on the opposite side of the electronic monitor 101, the cassette holder 104 is unable to interfere with the movement of the electronic monitor 101.
However, in the above conventional configuration of a video camera, the cassette holder 104 is curved to fit to a curved surface of the palm of the hand since the cassette holder 104 is disposed at an area where the user places a hand to hold the video camera body 103. This will broaden the width of the video camera, resulting in a larger video camera set. Moreover, a curved cassette holder 104 may require to be opened for inserting and ejecting a cassette. This prevents disposing other electronic circuits and mechanical components thereon, resulting in inefficient use of space. Furthermore, the cassette holder 104 and the grip belt 105 are disposed on the same side of the video camera body 103. In particular, in the configuration shown in FIG. 7, a grip belt 105 protrudes sideways beyond the cassette holder 104, and therefore interferes with inserting or ejecting a tape cassette from the cassette holder 104 while the user is operating the video camera with the hand inserted into the grip belt 105. This degrades the usability of a conventionally designed video camera with electronic monitor. If the electronic monitor 101 and the cassette holder 104 are provided on the same side to avoid this interference, the electronic monitor 101 and the cassette holder 104 may have to be disposed at a considerable distance from each other to prevent mutual interference, thus requiring a larger size for the entire video camera with electronic monitor.